JEDDAH, 10 November 2005 — The Transport Ministry has approved the establishment of a new joint stock company named Jeddah Taxi by a group of investors, informed sources said.
The formation of the company comes in the wake of a technical study conducted by the transport committee of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) on the project.
The sources did not disclose the capital of the company but emphasized that it would improve transportation in the business city. It will also support an existing plan to develop the public transport system in the city.
The new company will establish permanent taxi stations in various parts of the city in order to reduce traffic congestion, Asharq Al-Awsat reported quoting the sources. It will also encourage Saudis to work as taxi drivers.
At present there are 120 limousine companies in Jeddah operating more than 15,000 taxi cars. Total number of cars in the Kingdom is estimated at more than 10 million.
In a related development, a committee in charge of supervising transportation of students and teachers in Jeddah held a meeting recently and discussed arrangements for carrying out the project with the support of the private sector.
Private buses will transport students charging nominal fees. The panel comprised representatives from the education department, the traffic department, the Transport Ministry and the Jeddah Municipality.
